Death & The Penguin by Andrey Kurkov: Book review

A penguin makes Soviet Europe much more bearable

Keen observers of this blog will no doubt have noticed that progress is somewhat slow and zoos are not as helpful as I thought they would be. That said they do like to keep animals in cages so I shouldn't be too surprised they aren't the most generous people I've ever connected with.

So here is a book review that is not just filling up space, if you want to love a penguin even more than you already do and are also a fan of tension and dark humour then this is your calling card.

Death & The Penguin is a story that explores a journalists life in Ukraine, and it is bleak to say the least.

Viktor Zolotaryov is said journalist and his very existence is a cripplingly underwhelming one on the surface.

The man has a few friends and his short stories are never published. In fact Viktor doesn't have a great deal, but he does have a penguin. Misha is a gloomy eyed Emperor Penguin who was taken under Viktor's wing when the zoos in Ukraine couldn't take care of them any more.

One day Viktor is offered a somewhat suspicious job writing obituaries for Ukranian figureheads. hat aren't even dead yet. Not only are they not dying. none of them have so much as even a cough.  And then a senior politician takes an unplanned dive out of a window and Viktor's work is suddenly in demand.

Viktor thinks nothing of any of it until he roots through his editor's archives one day and finds all his obituaries neatly filed with imminent dates for publication.

Viktor reluctantly takes the jobs and accepts the money silently with only Misha to console in who disapproves of the whole ordeal but the money Viktor receives is put towards a heart transplant for his sick penguin which sadly comes from a four year old child.

Death & The Penguin at its core is a touching tale of companionship between two natural loners sprawled over the backdrop of a country that is pulling itself apart.

Don't take my word? Read in The Guardian

Buy 'Death & The Penguin' on Amazon:

Where to find your favourite Penguin

Simply a map depicting where every penguin can be found in the world

http://yellow-eyedpenguin.org.nz/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/Penguin_distribution.jpg

Update 7

Twycross Zoo Have replied to me

It reads as follows:

Hi Matthew

Thank you for your interest in Twycross Zoo and our penguins.

Unfortunately we only allow access to our penguins via pre-arranged and paid feeding sessions – we are going to be starting these in the next few months. Perhaps you could keep an eye on our website and try to be one of the first people to do this?

Did you visit our penguins at Twycross? We have a new modified enclosure for the penguins – you can get really close (but not touch) at feeding times as the penguins come out of the enclosure for a walk!

You might also want to consider adopting one of our penguins (but we won’t let you take it home L ).

Thanks again

Anna

Nice of Twycross to get back to me, and try and flog me their services even if I did clearly state I have no money.

In summary it was the reply I was expecting but not the one I was hoping for.

Onwards and upwards I suppose. It can only be so long before I ask if I can take a ride on an Antarctic fishing trawler. Although do they go near penguins or wales. I forget.

I am going to need your help more than ever now if you know of anything that might be useful please tweet me @c00pasaurus using the hashtag #PENGWIN